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ENGLISH
 LESSONS    
 

 


  gerund  -  infinitive 

One of the difficulties of the English language is that
some verbs are followed by the gerund  (ex : doing)
and others are followed by the infinitive (ex : to do).

Below you will find a table to help you :
 


When do you use the GERUND?
 (ex : doing)
 


When do you use the INFINITIVE
?  ( ex : to do)
 


      ● 
After verbs that express likes/dislikes :      
            
           like, love, enjoy
           dislike, hate
           don't mind, can't stand ..... doing
  • After certain other verbs,  such as :  
            
              admit             imagine
              appreciate     involve
              avoid             keep (on)
              consider        mention
              delay             miss
              deny              postpone
              finish             suggest ........ doing
     
  • After prepositions :  
         
              interested in ...   
              instead of ...
              good at ...
              before ...
              after ................................... doing
     
  • After certain expressions

              it's no use ...
              it's no good ...
              there's no point in .............. doing

 


   ●  After verbs that  refer to a future event :   

            want,  hope,  intend
            would like,    promise .........  to do


   ●  After certain other verbs, such as  :      
         
            afford           help
            agree           learn
            arrange        manage
            choose         offer
            fail               refuse
            happen        seem ..............   to do
 
  • After adjectives :                   

      glad  (ex : glad to know...)
      pleased  (ex : pleased to meet you...)
      disappointed  (ex : disappointed to hear...)

     
  • After "too" & "enough":       

       too difficult
       easy enough  .....................  to do

 

 

                  
  • The verbs : begin/start/continue can be followed by the gerund or the infinitive
     with little or no change in meaning.
  • The verbs : stop/try/remember can also take both, but the meaning changes.

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